Dealing with Eczema on the Hands

Latex and Nitrile gloves cause gross problems with my eczema. I work in a Science laboratory and also sail and work on boats for fun. If I wear these gloves often and my hands sweat, the effects are terrible: almost feels like a chemical burn.

However, wearing white cotton gloves (& booties) with Aveno oatmeal-based fragrance free hand lotion does the trick. Once the redness and itching are gone, you can get rid of the white gloves at work and just wear 'em at home. But, the more often you wash your hands, the more often you need to apply the lotion. Its nice though - it is not greasy and soaks in quickly.

Note - most lotions are very very bad for the hands and tend to dry them out even more. Alcohol free creams are better .. and work well with wet (damp) gloves following and then another pair of dry gloves on top so that you can touch, drive, etc. Petroleum jelly and olive oil work too if you are out of cream. STAY AWAY FROM CHEAP LOTIONS.

When i'm really bad, I soak 1st for 10-20 minutes in tepid water, apply the cream, then the wet gloves, then the dry ones and sleep with these one.

I've seen allergists and had all the testing. I'm apparently not allergic to anything. However, cleaning house, washing dishes, all day computer use, etc invariably cause problems. So does too much sun exposure. Use topical steroids sparingly --- just to get past the worst 2-3 days, then the soaking and wet gloves at home/night, and the Aveeno and white gloves during the day. Eventually, for me, it clears up. Use an antihistimine for 2-3 days too to avoid the itching.